1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to storage units in general, and, more particularly, to a storage unit for installation in a vehicle, such as a pickup truck or the like.
2Background Art
It is frequently necessary or convenient for carpenters, plumbers, mechanics, appliance servicemen, and the like, to perform service calls or other work in the field. Some of these workmen generally have a need to carry significant numbers of tools and supplies to the work site. Accordingly, some of these workmen generally use a pickup or similar truck fitted with tool-carrying compartments in the cargo area or sidewalls thereof. Such trucks, however, are expensive, and frequently such compartments, if installed in the bed of the pickup, may interfere with the use of the remainder of the pickup box for the carrying of cargo. Still further, some such storaqe compartments require the workman to reach or climb into the pickup truck box to retrieve the stored tools or materials, and it may be physically strenuous or harmful, let alone inconvenient, for the workman to bend over and reach into the pickup truck box to lift such heavy items. Another deficiency which is encountered with some forms of conventional tool boxes is that they interfere with the fitting of a conventional cover, such as a canopy, to a pickup box; such conventional covers are highly desirable, inasmuch as they serve to protect the contents of the pickup box from exposure to the elements and theft.
Despite the deficiencies encountered with conventional pickup tool boxes, proper storage of tools and materials in the truck is frequently critical to the efficiency of the workman; if not properly retained, the tools and materials (particularly small materials, such as nails and bolts) may quickly become scattered about the pickup box so as to interfere With the efficient rendering of services by the Workman. Accordingly, a number of designs of storage and tool boxes for installation in vehicles, such as pickup trucks, have been proposed in the past.
One such tool box is that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,789,195, issued Dec. 6, 1988 to Fletcher. Fletcher discloses a storage box for tools and the like, which includes a long upper box which sets on, and extends over, the upper edge of the sidewall of the pickup box. Drawers and compartments ar mounted beneath the upper box, above and at the forward and rearward ends of the fender well. As noted above, tool boxes of the type disclosed by Fletcher interfere with the installation of a conventional canopy to protect the contents of the pickup box. Also, in order to retrieve tools or materials which are stored in the compartment of the tool box of Fletcher which is located between the front end of the fender well and the forward wall of the pickup box, it would be necessary for the workman to climb into the pickup box, and then bend over or kneel in the pickup box to retrieve the materials. Still further, in the event that the workman should desire to use the full capacity of the pickup box for conventional cargo carrying, it would appear to be a relatively difficult and time-consuming task to remove the tool box of Fletcher from the pickup.
Another vehicle storage unit is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,573,731, issued Mar. 4, 1986 to Knaack et al. Knaack et al. disclose a storage drawer structure secured to the bed of a pickup truck. The storage drawer is enclosed within a boxlike housing, the top of which serves as a raised floor on the pickup truck bed. The drawer, which pulls out through the rear opening of the pickup box, is formed with a plurality of U-shaped internal channels in which divider plates are mounted. Structures are included in the unit to provide high strength and rigidity, and the unit is bolted to the vehicle floor. Accordingly, while the storage drawer unit of Knaack et al. appears to be a relatively strong design, it also appears to be a unit which would be quite difficult for the workman to remove from the bed of a pickup so that he would be able to use its full carrying capacity. Furthermore, while the top of the storage unit serves as a raised floor for the pickup box, the increase in height of the floor would likely render it more difficult to load and unload heavy objects from the bed of the pickup. Still further, the maximum size of tools and materials which could be stored in such a unit would be restricted to the internal height of the boxlike structure; this deficiency could prove particularly significant when attempting to store large power tools, such as power drills and saws, as well as materials contained in large boxes.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,469,364, issued Sept. 4, 1984, to Rafi-Zadeh, discloses a tool box mounted in a pickup truck bed with a moveable cover arranged over the bed. Storage units are provided which may be either upwardly directed bins or storage compartments, or drawers slideable relative to an associated frame. In general, the tool box of Rafi-Zadeh exhibits similar deficiencies in access and removability to those which have been described above.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,085,961, issued Apr. 25, 1978, to Brown, shows a tool box mount for a pickup truck. A frame is provided which supports a tool box, and which swings between a first position where the tool box can be opened, and a second position where the tool box cannot be opened. In the position in which the tool box cannot be opened, the front of the tool box faces parallel to and against a side of the pickup truck box. To move the tool box to the position in which it can be opened, the frame is swung away from the side of the pickup truck box on a pivoting arm. The frame is pivotably mounted on the end of the arm, so that as the arm swings the frame away from the side of the pickup truck box, the frame itself can be counterrotated on the arm so as to achieve a final position in which the front of the tool box faces the open end of the pickup box, when the tailgate is down. When the tailgate is closed, the frame cannot be swung to the position in which the tool box can be opened since it is necessary to swing the frame out over the open tailgate in order to achieve the second position. The principal objective of the device disclosed by Brown appears to be prevention of theft of the tools in the tool box. While it may be effective in that regard, the device disclosed by Brown shares a number of the deficiencies of the conventional tool box designs discussed above, for example, the workman must still lean over the tailgate of the pickup to retrieve tools from within the tool box. Also, when the tool box is in the position in which it can be opened, the workman has access to only one side of the tool box (i.e., the front of the tool box); accordingly, the device disclosed by Brown would appear to be limited to use only with conventional front-opening tool boxes which have relatively limited storage capacity. Furthermore, the frame taught by Brown appears to be suitable for mounting of only a single such tool box, thus further limiting the tool-carrying capacity. Still further, the frame assembly disclosed by Brown is a relatively complex device, and would consequently appear to be relatively expensive and difficult to manufacture.
Accordingly, there exists a need for a convenient, effective, and relatively inexpensive vehicle storage unit which avoids the deficiencies described above. Such a desirable vehicle storage unit would not interfere with the installation of a conventional pickup truck canopy, and would be easy to remove and replace in the event that the workman desires to use the full capacity of the pickup box for conventional cargo carrying. Such a desirable storage unit would preferable have the ability to position the tools and materials stored therein in a first location which is within the box of the pickup truck when the tailgate is closed, and a second position which extends through the opening provided when the tailgate is lowered, so that the workman does not need to lean or climb into the pickup box to retrieve the tools or materials. Still further, such a storage unit would preferably provide access to storage areas on more than one face thereof, so as to maximize efficient storage and ease of access.